The Apartheid Wall in Ar Ram Reinforces Zionist Apartheid

Palestinian Grassroots Anti-apartheid Wall Campaign

Thursday June 10, 2004

This new map shows the devastating path of the Apartheid Wall through the Ar Ram area, which is currently the Palestinian gateway between Jerusalem and Ramallah. Though construction first began in the area last February, the recent days have marked a heightened urgency in resistance to the Wall’s construction in this area, as Occupation Forces have been quickly pulling up roads, blocking access and tightening their grip on Ar Ram. The Wall’s construction in Ar Ram, as in other areas will result in the division and separation of Palestinian communities, including schools, places of work, land, medical facilities and family. Palestinians have been mobilizing against the Wall’s construction, fully rejecting it as a tool for expansion, colonization and apartheid.

When analyzing this map, it might be helpful to consider the following:

Palestinians will be denied access to “Israeli Thoroughfares,” marked by two blue lines, unless they have Jerusalem IDs or special permission. These roads, which currently serve as major routes for commerce, transport and travel between Jerusalem and Ramallah, as well as most areas in the North, will function as Israeli Bypass Roads, blocked to Palestinians by Occupation checkpoints. The Bypass Roads also serve to “complete” ghettos imposed by the Wall. For example, in Ar Ram, where the community is not cut off by the Wall, it is cut off by the Bypass Road, fully isolating the community, trapping some 60,000 Palestinians into the ghetto.

Occupation checkpoints will not be removed as a result of the Wall’s construction, possibly moved, or in some cases, new checkpoints will likely be set up. For example, in the Hizma and Tur/Azarya areas, where the projected alternative Palestinian roadlink will meet with the Bypass Road, there will likely be Occupation checkpoints of some sort to divert Palestinian traffic away from the all roads which will have access to Jerusalem. This will reinforce the Zionist apartheid system, prohibit Palestinian access to their lands, resources and rights to Jerusalem and other areas in Palestine.

The Wall’s path will both annex lands on which colonial settlements are currently built as well as facilitate increased expansion of settlements, thus perpetuating the illegal confiscation of Palestinian land and resources. In particular, the map clearly shows massive settlement expansion projected in the Ram, Hizma, Anata, Za’im, Azarya areas. This land confiscation magnifies the racist and illegal Zionist project of judaizing Palestine and expelling Palestinians from their villages and lands.

The Apartheid Wall’s path will strangle Palestinian movement, commerce, education and basic social infrastructure in the entire area, and severely impact access to the entire Northern West Bank.

For more information on the Apartheid Wall in Ar Ram, see our Latest News piece here.